Berserk, Total War: Second Son of Nobles

The midday sun was like a red-hot iron disc, pressing down directly overhead, and the air was filled with the scorching heat of dust.

Gorkas's hands, gripping the shovel, were burning hot from use, and the wooden handle was covered in a mixture of sweat and mud. Each swing required all his strength.

He hunched over, the shovel making a dull thud as it plunged into the soil, the sticky, damp earth being forcefully pried up and tossed aside to form a mound.

The repetitive movements continued for an unknown amount of time, and his back was already soaked with sweat, clinging tightly to the rough inner lining.

Finally, he stopped moving, supporting himself on the shovel handle. His legs trembled slightly, his chest heaved violently, and he was panting heavily.

He gazed at the empty road in the distance, his brows furrowed, his voice filled with weariness and confusion, tinged with a hint of complaint:

"The main force has already set off, why should we stay here digging in the dirt?"

Jiedu, who was standing next to him, also stopped what he was doing. He glanced at Gorkas and said calmly:

"Our mission is to protect the king. This is the outer perimeter of the main camp. We must build fortifications as soon as possible to secure our rear."

Gorkas glanced down at the trench he had just dug, which was half a person deep. The trench walls were still pitted and uneven, and a small amount of muddy water had accumulated at the bottom.

He chuckled and kicked at the soil by the ditch, causing it to fall in a flurry.

"This thing? You call it a defensive fortification? If the other side really attacks, this trench can't even hide people. Who can it defend against?"

"This was personally planned by an officer from Heldran."

Jiedu squatted down and used a shovel to tamp down the ditch wall.

"The trenches need to be dug deeper and wider, and then we can put chevaux-de-frise along the sides of the trenches to defend against enemy cavalry. When the cavalry charge, their hooves will be tripped by the trenches, and even if they manage to get through, the chevaux-de-frise will stop their charge."

Gorkas looked at the sign in the direction of Jedot, but still felt it was unreliable. He turned and pointed to the camp near the river not far away, where smoke was rising from the chimneys and knights in bright armor could be seen walking back and forth from time to time.

His voice rose a few decibels, carrying obvious displeasure:

"Alright, alright, even if this trench is really useful, why don't they use it? Look at those people from the White Dragon Knights, they're all just sitting here doing nothing but watching us work ourselves to death."

Jiedu looked in the direction he pointed, a hint of helplessness flashing in his eyes:

“They are the king’s personal guards, their status is different. Although we are all protecting the king, the difference is there, how could they possibly do hard labor with us?”

Gorkas snorted heavily, gripped the shovel tightly again, but did not dig down immediately.

The Band of the Hawk's mission this time is to protect the northern part of the headquarters.

Although they were called guards, they were actually just doing odd jobs like building fortifications, and there was also a thousand-strong White Dragon Knights unit stationed nearby.

But apart from the occasional patrol, the knights spent the rest of their time either resting in the camp or wiping their armor and weapons by the river, and no one came to lend a hand.

The more he thought about it, the more resentful he became. They were all serving the king, so why did they have to dig in the scorching sun while the knights could sit comfortably?

Jiedu saw through his thoughts and sighed:

"Don't overthink it. We've taken the king's money, so we have to do what he orders. The sooner we finish the fortifications, the sooner we can have peace of mind. If the enemy does come, we'll have something to rely on."

Just as Gorcas was about to say something, a series of rapid hoofbeats suddenly came from afar.

The two looked up and saw two knights riding tall horses coming from the White Dragon Knights' camp. The dust kicked up by the horses was particularly dazzling in the sunlight.

The two knights wore gleaming silver armor with gold trim, and sharp longswords hung at their waists.

They rode their horses to the edge of the ditch, pulled on the reins, and the horses reared up, pawing the air a few times before landing steadily.

One of the knights looked down at Gorkas and Jedo, his tone filled with undisguised contempt:

"You lowly commoner, what are you dawdling for? Why are you slacking off and not working?"

Gorkas was already furious, and the word "commoner" completely ignited his anger.

He abruptly sat up, throwing down the shovel that clattered to the ground, sending up a few specks of mud. He looked up at the rider on horseback, his chest heaving with rage.

"We're working ourselves to the bone digging trenches here, while you're just sitting around in the camp. What gives you the right to accuse us of slacking off? Why aren't you working?"

"us?"

The knight chuckled as if he had heard something ridiculous.

“Of course we have a more important task: protecting the king’s headquarters. This is something you lowly people can’t understand.”

“Protecting the King? Aren’t we protecting the King by building fortifications here?”

Gorkas took a step forward, his eyes sharp.

“Without us building fortifications during the day and standing guard at night, how could the king be safe in the base camp? You only know how to hide in the back and enjoy yourselves; you're just being lazy.”

The other knight frowned, his tone even more arrogant:

“What do you know, you lowly commoner? You are only protecting the outer perimeter of the king’s headquarters, while we are the royal guards, directly protecting the king’s safety.”

"Besides, who are you? A bunch of hired mercenaries, and you dare to boast that you're protecting the king? Know your place!"

Seeing this, Jiedu quickly stepped forward and grabbed Gorkas's arm, fearing that he might do something outrageous in a moment of impulsiveness.

He turned to look at the two knights, trying to soften his tone:

“My lords, he was just in a hurry. The fortifications are not yet finished, and we are already short-handed. If we had a few more people to help, the fortifications could be completed faster. If enemy cavalry suddenly appears and we are not prepared, not only will we be in danger, but the safety of the king may also be threatened.”

The knight who had spoken earlier looked disdainful upon hearing this. He pulled on the reins, and the horse paced restlessly for a few steps.

"Danger? That's simply impossible. Messengers from the front lines have already reported that Midland's main force has routed Yoda's vanguard. The army is now moving unimpeded and will soon reach the fortress on the other side. Yoda's army is already preoccupied with its own problems; how could it possibly have the strength to attack here..."

No sooner had he finished speaking than a more rapid sound of hooves came from the north.

The crowd looked in the direction of the sound and saw a cavalryman covered in sweat, his horse foaming at the mouth, charging past them like a madman, kicking up clouds of dust that made them cough.

"Cough cough cough..."

The two knights of the White Dragon Knights quickly raised their hands to brush away the dust in front of them.

As the dust settled slightly, they looked in the direction the cavalryman had gone, and one of them couldn't help but curse:

"These unruly commoners are living well now, they don't know any manners at all! In the past, when they saw nobles passing by, wouldn't they all dismount and bow from afar? The world has really changed, there's less and less distinction between superiors and inferiors!"

After finishing his tirade, he turned to look at Gorkas and Jedo, his contempt growing even stronger.

"You're the same. Don't think that just because you accepted the King's employment contract, he values ​​you so much. The King has signed countless employment contracts, and mercenary groups like yours are a dime a dozen. Who knows if he'll even remember you in a few years? Don't get carried away by this little thing and forget your place. In our eyes, you'll always be just inferiors!"

Gorcas was trembling with anger. Just as he was about to retort, a loud horn sound suddenly came from afar, the sound of "woo-woo-woo" was rapid and loud.

"It's the assembly call!"

The other knight's expression changed, and he quickly spoke up.

"Something terrible must have happened, we need to go back quickly!"

The two men, no longer bothering to reprimand Golcas and Jedo, immediately turned their horses around, spurred them on, and galloped toward the White Dragon Knights' camp, the sound of their hooves gradually fading into the distance.

Gorkas watched their hurried departure, his anger still burning. He kicked a nearby embankment and muttered:

"What are they? Just because they're the Imperial Guard, they think they're so great? Let's see if they can hold off the real enemy!"

Jedo frowned deeply, looking in the direction from which the horn sounded, a vague sense of unease creeping into his heart:

"They suddenly sounded the assembly call over there; something might have really happened. We should quickly deepen the trenches and make more preparations."

Although Gorcas was dissatisfied, he knew that Jiedu was right. He picked up the shovel and started digging again, but he did it with more force, as if he wanted to vent his anger on the soil.

Meanwhile, inside the central command tent at headquarters, the atmosphere was so heavy it was almost suffocating.

King Midland sat in the main seat, his face grim, his sharp gaze fixed on the scout kneeling below.

Several generals in armor stood in the tent, each with a serious expression, awaiting the scouts' report.

"Your Majesty, something is wrong!"

The scout's voice was urgent, and his forehead was covered in cold sweat.

"A large number of Yoda cavalry are attacking from the north at great speed, and they are already approaching the outer perimeter of the main camp!"

"what?"

King Midland sat bolt upright, his voice filled with shock.

"How many people are there? Which of Yoda's units are they?"

"Judging from the insignia on their flags, they should be Yoda's Ram Charge Knights."

The scout answered quickly.

"Judging from their size, there were about a thousand people. They first attacked a convoy of supplies that was coming from the north, burned the supplies on the convoy, and then headed towards the main camp. The troops along the way were unable to stop them at all."

Upon hearing this, a murmur of discussion immediately arose in the tent. Several generals whispered among themselves, their faces showing disbelief.

"How is that possible? Our main force scouted along the way and found no trace of the enemy. How could Yoda's cavalry suddenly appear from the north?"

"The Ram Charge Knights are Yoda's elite cavalry, extremely powerful in combat. Why would they circle around to the north to attack our main camp?"

"Could the information from the front lines be incorrect? Did the main force fail to completely defeat Yoda's vanguard, and instead allow their cavalry to bypass them?"

A murmur arose, and King Midland raised his hand to signal for silence, turning his gaze to Count Yuris standing to the side:

"Count Yuris, what do you think of this matter?"

Count Yuris stepped forward, his expression composed:

“Your Majesty, the enemy has likely taken a long detour, avoiding the route of our main force. They first went straight to the north where our defenses are weak, then crossed the river to the west, and then attacked our main camp to the south. Cavalry units are highly mobile, so it is not difficult for them to do this, and the route is through remote areas, making it difficult for our scouts to detect them.”

King Midland nodded, his brow still furrowed.

"What should we do now? Thousands of elite cavalry have suddenly attacked, and our fortifications are not yet complete. Will we be in danger?"

"Your Majesty, don't worry."

Count Euryss's tone was full of confidence.

“We have two infantry regiments of 5,000 men each, as well as the elite White Dragon Knights’ guard. We have plenty of troops. As long as we quickly deploy our troops to the north before they arrive, using trenches and chevaux-de-frise to block their charge, and then have the infantry regiments cooperate with the White Dragon Knights to launch a counterattack, a thousand-man cavalry unit will not be a threat to the safety of our main camp.”

King Midland's worries eased slightly as he looked at Count Yuris's confident expression.

He pondered for a moment and said slowly:

"Since you are so confident, then the army is entirely in your hands. Make sure to hold the main camp and not let Yoda's cavalry succeed."